Hey guys,
I am doing some market research before I buy a new AMD/ATI graphics card for my 4 year old rig, and I have recently concluded that AMD/ATI Radeon HD 6970 is the right card for me.
However, when I was checking prices, I came across several Radeon HD 6970's, with different designators. Instead of "ATI/AMD" they were designated XFX, ASUS and GIGABYTE. Interestingly, these cards, though apparently the same model, had different appearance, different fan configurations, and
even different price.
Look here:http://www.bestprice.gr/search?q=radeon+hd+6970
Asus Radeon HD 6970 2GB [EAH6970 DCII/2DI4S/2GD5]http://www.overclock.net/forums/threads/full_editor/posttype/newthread/fullpageid/67#
336.5 Euro, 2 fans.
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Gigabyte Radeon HD 6970 2GB GDDR5 [GV - R697OC - 2GD]
343.91 Euro, 3 fans
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XFX Radeon HD6970 2GB (HD - 697A - CNFC)
315.35 Euro, 1 fan (lol?)
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MSI Radeon HD6970 Lightning 2GB (R6970 Lightning)
364.54€=, 2 fans
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Aren't all these cards the same make & model? If yes, why are they selling them at diff prices and why do they carry diff designators? Also, why
some of those cards only have one fan, others have 2 fans and others have 3 fans? Lol? Isn't there a model standard?
In addition, XFX appears to have bad reputation for selling 2nd-hand/refurbished parts. Apparently, that's the reason theya re selling lower than everybody else.
Look here:

Quote:

Cons: I have sent back 3 out of 4 video cards in the last 3 years, Black editions their top of the line, caution a lot of their cards are refurbished.
Other Thoughts: Dont buy any XFX video cards, go with EVGA. I am a Network Security Administrator I deal with computer hardware all day, don't waste your money on XFX

^^According to the above, the only 7xxx 3D gaming capable card is HD 7970. It requires "Minimum 4GB of system memory" , does not support Windows XP, and is a PCI 3.0 card.

I really doubt that PCI 3.0 cards will perform well on my 4-year old PCI 2.0 MOBO. In addition, I don't want to upgrade from Windows XP at this stage. I want to put this off for another couple of years when I will change all of my rig and get a new MOBO, CPU, and sound card.

I am very, very happy with my QX 9650. It has the performance of an overclocked Core I7 2500 according to the SANDRA benchmarks, and I can run my favourite MMORG, SW TOR at max resolution and settings with 40-60 FPS. The reason I am buying this card is to keep up for another two years before I upgrade everything.

My QX 9650 has been working perfectly and flawlessly since March 2008, overclocked at 3.79 GHZ.

DONT go for 69xx it`s old technology more pricey, doesnt have ASIC test quality, more temepratures, even hd 7850 in crossfire would be better than 6970 Cfx

Quote:

The performance you need, the technology you deserve: the AMD Radeon™ HD 7850 GPU offers full support for DirectX® 11.1 with the revolutionary 28nm GCN Architecture—your games and apps have never had it this good.
The next generation of AMD Eyefinity technology is here, featuring all-new support for stereo 3D, universal bezel compensation and brand new display configurations. Face it: the best just got better.1,2
Armed with the new PCI Express 3.0 standard, multi-GPU configurations with AMD CrossFire™ technology are just another way to obliterate the competition with the revolutionary AMD Radeon™ HD 7850.3,4
Leave no performance behind. Get higher clocks and faster gaming with AMD PowerTune technology on the AMD Radeon™ HD 7850.5
Fold and mine faster than ever with AMD App Acceleration powered by the unprecedented 28nm GCN Architecture.6
The market isn’t ready for 4k video, but Radeon™ is. Featuring full support for HDMI® (with 4k) and DisplayPort 1.2 HBR2, the AMD Radeon™ HD 7850 is set for quad HD.

i cant see anything mention in the min system requirements on official AMD site HERE and the only thing i found is they arent providing driver of 7xxx series for XP y wont u move to win 7 ? you can get windows 7 for free have a look at THIS

and about the PCIe issue i dont think it should be a problem have a look HERE and HERE